Mare and Cal
Mare and Cal is the romantic pairing between Mare Barrow and Tiberias Calore VII. The two met at a tavern when Mare attempted to rob Cal. Mare was a poor red barely scraping by, whereas, Cal is a silver prince and future king of Norta. Background Red Queen Mare Barrow first meets Cal in a tavern where she tried to steal from him but was caught. Instead of reporting her to the silver guards he gave her a tetrarch followed by another. He walks her back home as Mare told him about her miserable life on his request. Before leaving, Cal told her that he's sorry for her. The following morning, Mare got a job in Summerton where she uncovered the fact that Cal is actually the "Crown Prince" and he got her the job to save her from conscription. During the Queenstrial, the direct daughter or granddaughter of the lord of a high house would compete for Cal 's hand, Mare displays electrokinetic powers against Cal's eventual bride, Evangeline Samos. She tries to run from the Silvers before they can catch her but before she truly can Cal catches her and whispers the same thing he last said to her, that he is sorry. Cal and Mare develop an attraction to one another almost immediately following their first meeting, sharing their first kiss while she was still engaged to his younger brother. In the middle of Red Queen, Maven convinces Mare that Cal is her enemy as he claims he doesn't believe in a change. But soon, after Maven's betrayal, she figures out Cal wasn't the real enemy after all. After Maven became king, the two escaped execution together with help from the Scarlet Guard and took a vow to kill Maven. Cal and Mare have a very close relationship. Glass Sword The two agree to abstain from entering any romantic scenario but despite their commitment, they fail to restrain from sharing a kiss and a few moments here and there that ultimately go against the agreement. They even share a bed when they are at Notch. Towards the end of Glass Sword ''wherein Mare strikes a bargain with Maven, her surrender in exchange for the release of Cal, Kilorn and other Scarlet Guard members,'' Mare admits to herself that, "If I could speak, I would tell Cal that I’m sorry, that I love him, that I need him.” Ultimately admitting her love for him. King's Cage Cal does everything to get Mare back and when he finally does, they can't believe it. While Mare tries to forget her experience from Maven's prison, Cal decides to help her exercise. On one particularly stormy day, they were running when it started to rain. Cal suggested they head on back but Mare said that they should stay. They ended up making love in the forest. After that, their relationship grows more serious between them. They begin sharing a bed in the barracks of Cal where it is implied they have sex. In this book, Cal finally tells Mare that he loves her and Mare confesses the same thing, which she then asks him to break his promise that they made back in Tuck and to "distract" her. At the end of the book, Cal takes his grandmothers offer to be the King of Norta, which leaves Mare heartbroken and severely damages their relationship. "To stand in front of the person who is your whole world and be told you are not enough. You are not the choice. You are a shadow to the person who is your sun." War Storm Mare tries to ignore Cal even though they are still in love with each other. Surprisingly, Evangeline tries to get Cal and Mare back together and they did for a while before the two had to split ways once again. In the end, with some final encouragement from Evangeline, Cal gives up the throne and asks Mare, “Is it too late?” for him to choose her, and she, overjoyed, says no and runs to embrace him. In the end, she decides that she has to find herself and know who she really is before pursuing their relationship and they share a final farewell embrace. Mare goes to Montfort, while Cal goes to Norta to help pick up pieces after the war. Mare tells Cal that she'll come back for him, and he tells her that he'll wait for her. Mare also puts in the earring Cal gave her in King’s Cage. Broken Throne They first see each other on their balcony for their rooms, but never share a word. They then see each other in a delegation meeting, where Cal sees her dressed nicely. He blushes at the thought of getting her out of the outfit and ends up heating up Julian, who says "Could you not?". Cal replies with "Sorry,". Mare and Cal reunite in a bar and attend the gala together. In the epilogue, it is also revealed that they share two children: Shade Calore and Coriane Calore. Rival Relationships * Mare and Maven: This pair was formally engaged, but Maven betrayed Mare. Maven still holds an unnatural and weird love/obsession for Mare and is jealous of what his brother has. * Mare and Kilorn: If the two continued their lives in the Stilts, it could have grown into a relationship. When Mare began spending most of her time with Cal, Kilorn began expressing jealousy toward him. In Glass Sword, Kilorn also confessed to having feelings for Mare. * Cal and Evangeline: These two were also engaged on 2 occasions keeping Mare and Cal apart, due to Cal's duty. * Cal and Anabel: Cal feels a duty to his grandmother and repeatedly chose her over Mare. His grandmother keeps Cal all to herself and away from Mare and drama. * Cal and the Crown: Cal was raised to choose the crown and become King of Norta and when the time came Cal choose his crown over his relationship with Mare. Quotes Gallery Mare & Cal 02.png